Gardens

From TFC Galactopedia

"So what did you do on Coruscant, aside from Academy related things?" Talen McKleary asked.

Zannah paused and thought for a moment. "Well, visited the Galactic Museum a time or two, saw the occasional holodrama, and of course did the traditional dive-crawl through Invisec…" She stopped to shudder for dramatic effect before continuing. "I even went to the Botanical Gardens once. Actually, that was probably the most memorable side trip I had while I was there."

Seira's muzzle wrinkled. "Gardens? Why? Did the plants try to eat you or something?"

The white furred vixen laughed. "Oh no, it wasn't the plants that were interesting… It was the, ahh… company. You see I didn't want to visit the gardens. Bespari Delkados had essentially guilted me into going to a party she was hosting there. I was doing my level best to blend into the ferns most of the time. It meant I got to observe a great deal of what went on without getting dragged into it, which, believe me, is preferable to discussing political maneuvering with that crowd. Bespari had invited a number of local high-class individuals as well, so in addition to a mess of Aristos with all their children, nannies, and servants, you have Coruscant's elite, with all of their children, nannies, and servants. It was a giant mess. Even my grandmother, you'd know her as Lady Asria or Lady Fallon-Touras, was there. That," Zannah added, "Was a mistake on Bespari's part…"

Zannah tugged selfconsiously at her dress uniform's tunic, and tried to pretend even harder that she was part of the stand of nokorian bis trees she stood near. Never comfortable with the shining social circles she was forced to traverse, she felt even more uncomfortable than usual in her cadet garb. Lady Bespari's first reaction on seeing her had not helped. Zannah fought not to blush through her fur as she remembered. The tall, elegant lemorian lady had gone quite still as she surveyed the younger woman's chosen garb.

"Oh, my dear… You should have informed me you needed a tailor. We could have made sure you had appropriate attire. Ah well, it cannot be helped now. We shall have to make due."

Zannah, who was quite proud of her achievements and her right to wear her uniform, had found herself off kilter and mildly embarrassed from the party's start. It was not a good place to be while surrounded by so many political sharks. The titters and backhanded comments she received while she made the required round of greetings had only worsened the situation.

She sighed and eased back further into the shoulder high ferns that screened the bases of the [i]bis[/i] trees off from the clearing where the gathering was being held. Beautiful and powerful people glided back and forth across the smooth grass, pretending at picnicking. Servers, all live people, no droids, flitted around them with practiced ease, bearing trays of hors d'oeuvres and crystal goblets of wine. Young children frolicked and played under the watchful eyes of nannies and tutors. Older children tried to emulate their parents. Right then, all Zannah wanted was a polite reason to make an exit. Decorum forbade her from simply walking out, despite how desperately she wanted to leave. A sudden stir at the far end of the lawn made her ears prick forward, and she eased a little closer through the foliage to get a better look. What she saw made her choke back gales of laughter.

At this end of the lawn, designers had sculpted a small ornamental pond with a tiny arched bridge spanning its narrowest point. The soft grass sloped gently down to meet the water's edge, inviting one to slip off one's shoes and wade in the shallows. It appeared Lady Asria, Zannah's maternal grandmother, had taken the enticement to the full extent. Untended by her usual bevy of servants, the elder lemorian had completely disrobed, left her garments in a pile, and waded into the water. Unfortunately, the pond only reached to her knees. She was happily screeching to the gathered Aristos and guests to come and join her. One of the nannies reached out to cover the eyes of her young charge. Most of the guests were milling uncertainly, but several of them looked as if they were seriously considering joining the old lady in the pond. One such pair of young women, both obviously guests since neither was lemorian, stood close enough to where Zannah sheltered in the ferns for her to hear their conversation.

The puma stared at the older woman in the water and fingered her gorgeous gown in consternation. "I didn't know this was a nudist garden," she remarked to her companion, a young female dalmatian with perfectly styled extraordinarily blue hair.

"Is it?" the other girl asked, tail wagging happily. "That is so neat!"

The feline tapped her chin with a manicured nail. "I suppose we should strip, then."

Blue-haired girl grinned. "Alright!" she said, and then tugged her friend in the water's direction. "Come on!"

Zannah smothered a snort of laughter with both hands. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed movement coming across the lawn. Someone had alerted the Gardens' security force to the disturbance. Bespari Delkados came swooping out to intercept them, and ended up being drawn along by the tide anyway. Chuckling to herself, Zannah slipped quietly away through the trees to join a path that would take her further from the disintegrating party on the lawn. She knew an opening when she saw one, and was more than willing to exploit it. Overall, though, she was profoundly relieved not to have to make small talk with anyone else for the rest of the day at least.

Talen rolled on the floor with laughter, clutching her middle. Seira just looked bewildered. "They didn't… did they?"

"I don't know." Zannah smiled. "I didn't stick around to find out."

"And Lady Asria. Did she really..?"

"Yes." Zannah grinned. "She did."

"Oh my."